Stephen King’s Reading List for Writers

“If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools)
to write. Simple as that.” ― Stephen King

In the afterword to his acclaimed guide On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, Stephen King shares the following reading list of 96 books, covering a diverse range of fiction and non-fiction titles.

Accompanying the list is this explanation:

These are the best books I’ve read over the last three or four years, the period during which I wrote The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon, Hearts in Atlantis, On Writing, and the as-yet-unpublished From a Buick Eight. In some way or other, I suspect each book in the list had an influence on the books I wrote.

As you scan this list, please remember that I’m not Oprah and this isn’t my book club. These are the ones that worked for me, that’s all. But you could do worse, and a good many of these might show you some new ways of doing your work. Even if they don’t, they’re apt to entertain you. They certainly entertained me.

23 responses to Stephen King’s Reading List for Writers

I respect Mr. King immensely, but having his wife’s work on the list smacks of a conflict of interest. While I would not question or debate the merits of Tabitha King’s writing, his personal relationship shadows his professional judgement. I suppose in his defense it can be noted that there are no ‘Joe Hill’ books on the list. As others noted I find it disappointing to see no Lovecraft on the list. Similarly I find a lack of Matheson, Asimov, Heinlein, Poe, or Bradbury. The list seems weighted towards what would receive a popular reception with the ‘intelligentsia’ or critics.

Or maybe he just likes these books better than Lovecraft, etc.? Besides in On Writing, from where this list came from, he talks about those authors in depth, particularly Lovecraft. Also, Joyce Carol Oates, Michael Connolly, and JK Rowling hardly carry weight with the intellgentsia.

I think the list is to share what he read, not to have critics to show up and blather about his poor choices. I always appreciate reading lists though I can see I would not read all of these I certainly am appreciative of the privilege of having them shared in this way.

Clearly, te fact that he hasnt read Lovecraft during this 2 years hardly means anything. He’s clearly saying he is sharing ehat he has read over a very short period of time, not his favorite books or anything. And if among those books there are his wives, so be it.
What I find remarkable, and rather telling, about the list is that there is not one book that is not English literature…